Dilettante is the art-pop brain-child of multi-instrumentalist Francesca Pidgeon. Based in the North of England but now performing across the UK and internationally Dilettante has supported the likes of Caribou, Self Esteem + Philip Selway (Radiohead) with her unorthodox but intricately woven looped woodwind and fuzzy guitar licks.
They have sold out headline shows in Manchester, Leeds, Halifax, London, Hull and Liverpool plus festival appearances at SXSW (Texas, US) NXNE (Toronto, CAN), Kendal Calling, Deershed, Live at Leeds, Manchester Jazz Festival, Focus Wales and The Great Escape. Pidgeon was recently granted the prestigious Paul Hamlyn Foundation Award for Artists. She has begun scoring for film, winning a nomination for best composer at Underwire Film Festival. Her second album ‘Life of The Party’ was released in Jan 2025 on EMI North.
“A dazzlingly skewed pop-vision” **** – MOJO
“Groove-laden misfit art-pop worth rooting for“ – Uncut
“The freshest pop aficionado gracing the circuit. Dilettante’s set is an exceptional performance piece.” – NARC
“Upbeat pop perfection. She is a multi-instrumentalist maelstrom who fills the album with a cavalcade of funk guitars, swirling synths and a whole school cupboard’s worth of woodwind and brassy flourishes.” – Electronic Sound
“A CBGB Zooey Deschanel making art rock as magnificent as the genre has ever been. Fizzing with life and invention, a steely forward gaze under a 00s indie fringe, a Manic Pixie Dream Terminator.” – Under The Radar Magazine
FFO St Vincent, tUnE-yArDs, Dirty Projectors + Fiona Apple